What is the maximum number of grams of sugar that one should consume daily?Asked by anonymous on Apr 24, 2008
in Nutrition

I consume between 50 - 100 grams of sugar, just from fruits and vegetables each day. (I eat a lot of fresh fruit.) The numbers that I have seen for daily recommendations of sugar have been far lower than that. However, I am not sure if those recommendations only relate to sucrose or if they also include fructose? Could you possibly provide some insight as to what a person should be consuming daily for each of the "oses" and what are the maximum amounts?

Answer

The guidelines
regarding sugar refer to added sugars, not the naturally occurring sugars in fruit
and milk. Added sugars are added to foods and beverages in processing and
preparation. Foods high in added sugars
include soda, fruit drinks, candy, cakes, cookies, ice cream, sweetened yogurt,
sweetened cereal, etc. The World Health
Organization recommends limiting added sugars to 10% of total calories. For instance, if you need 1800 calories a
day, your sugar limit is 180 calories. Divide 180 by 4 to find your limit in terms
of grams. Unfortunately, The Nutrition Facts Panel on
the food label provides information about total sugars but does not list added
sugars separately. You need to check the
ingredient list to find added sugars. Names for sugar include dextrose,
sucrose, corn syrup and others. Your
goal should be to use as little added sugar as you can.